SantaCon – Party in the True Spirit of Giving

SantaCon is a gathering of people donning Santa Suits. According to the NYC SantaCon website, it is not a pub crawl and calling it one will cause a sugar plum fairy to die. Far be it for us to harm a fairy so we will merrily oblige. It is considered a convention of charitable mayhem where you are required to go all-out in head-to-toe Christmas regalia.

The non-political, gender neutral and non-denominational gathering of Santas (reindeer, snowmen, Sexy Mrs. Claus and elves are also welcome) is meant for fun but always has an underlying “claus.” In addition to a portion of your entry fee going to a charity, you are usually also asked to bring non-perishable food items or an unwrapped toy for Toys For Tots

.

The biggest SantaCon is in New York City on December 15, 2012. Last year it was estimated that 20,000 Santas participated. Hopefully, this year will be even bigger. Perhaps some of the money raised, and items collected can go to the victims of hurricane Sandy. The are many approximately 275 Santa conventions around the US and 37 in foreign locations so be sure to look for one in your area. See our list below. But remember that there is usually drinking involved so leave your sleigh at home or find a sober elf to be your designated driver.

So even though SantaCon brings to mind, drunken, carousing party-goers in Santa Costumes we know that there is a real purpose to all that partying – charity!

Here is a list of US locations

Albany

NY

Sat, Dec 8

Albuquerque

NM

tba

Anchorage

AK

Sat, Dec 15

Ann Arbor

MI

tba

Annapolis

MD

tba

Appleton

WI

tba

Arcata

CA

tba

Asbury Park

NJ

Sat, Dec 8

Asheville

NC

tba

Aspen

CO

tba

Athens

GA

tba

Atlanta

GA

Sat, Dec 15

Augusta

GA

Sat, Dec 15

Austin

TX

Sat, Dec 15

Baltimore

MD

Sat, Dec 15

Bangor

ME

tba

Bellingham

WA

tba

Bend

OR

Sat, Dec 1

Benicia

CA

Fri, Dec 14

Benicia

CA

Sat, Dec 15

Bethlehem

PA

tba

Black Rock

CT

Sat, Dec 1

Boise

ID

Sat, Dec 15

Boston

MA

Sat, Dec 8

Boulder

CO

Fri, Nov 23

Branson

MO

tba

Brooklyn

NY

Sat, Dec 15

Carrboro

NC

tba

Chapel Hill

NC

tba

Charleston

SC

Sat, Dec 8

Charlotte

NC

Sat, Dec 15

Charlottesville

VA

tba

Chicago

IL

Sat, Dec 8

Cincinnati

OH

Sat, Dec 8

Clemson

SC

tba

Cleveland

OH

Sat, Dec 8

Cocoa Beach

FL

Sat, Dec 22

Colorada Springs

CO

Sat, Dec 1

Columbia

MO

Sat, Dec 8

Columbia

SC

tba

Columbus

OH

Sat, Dec 8

Columbus

OH

Sat, Dec 15

Corvallis

OR

Sat, Dec 15

Dallas

TX

Sat, Dec 15

Dayton

OH

tba

Delray Beach

FL

Sat, Dec 22

Denver

CO

Sat, Dec 22

Detroit

MI

tba

Dubuque

IA

Sat, Dec 8

Durham

NC

Sat, Dec 15

Eagle Rock

CA

tba

Eugene

OR

Sat, Dec 15

Eureka

CA

Fri, Dec 7

Fairbanks

AK

Fri, Dec 14

Fargo

ND

Sat, Dec 8

Fayetteville

AR

Sat, Dec 8

Fayetteville

NC

tba

Ferndale

MI

tba

Fort Lauderdale

FL

Sat, Dec 22

Fort Collins

CO

Sat, Dec 15

Fort Wayne

IN

Fri, Dec 14

Fresno

CA

Sat, Dec 8

Glenwood Springs

CO

tba

Greensboro

NC

Sat, Dec 22

Greenwich

CT

tba

Harrisburg

PA

Fri, Dec 21

Hartford

CT

Sat, Dec 8

Hayward

CA

Sat, Dec 8

Helena

MT

Sat, Dec 8

Hoboken

NJ

Sat, Dec 22

Honolulu

HI

Fri, Dec 7

Houston

TX

Sat, Dec 1

Houston

TX

Sat, Dec 15

Huntington Beach

CA

tba

Indianapolis

IN

Sat, Dec 8

Ipswich

MA

tba

Jacksonville

FL

tba

Joplin

MO

Sat, Dec 15

Jupiter

FL

Fri, Dec 14

Kalamazoo

MI

Sat, Dec 15

Kansas City

MO

Sat, Dec 22

Ketchum

ID

Fri, Dec 14

Key West

FL

Sat, Dec 15

Knoxville

TN

tba

Kona

HI

Sat, Dec 15

La Crosse

WI

tba

Lakeland

FL

Sat, Dec 15

Laramie

WY

Sat, Dec 8

Las Vegas

NV

Sat, Dec 8

Lawrence

KS

Sat, Dec 15

Lewiston

NY

tba

Lexington

KY

tba

Little Rock

AR

tba

Long Beach

CA

Sat, Dec 22

Long Island

NY

Sat, Dec 22

Los Angeles

CA

Sat, Dec 8

Louisville

KY

Sat, Dec 15

Macomb

IL

Thu, Dec 13

Madison

WI

Sat, Dec 1

Manasquan

NJ

tba

Manchester

NH

tba

Miami

FL

Sat, Dec 22

Michigan City

IN

Sat, Dec 1

Milwaukee

WI

Sat, Dec 15

Missoula

MT

Fri, Dec 21

Mobile

AL

Sat, Dec 15

Modesto

CA

Fri, Dec 14

Moncton

NB

tba

Monroe

MI

tba

Montreal

QC

tba

Morristown

NJ

tba

Naples

FL

Fri, Dec 14

Nashville

TN

Sat, Dec 8

New Brunswick

NJ

Tue, Dec 11

New Haven

CT

tba

New Orleans

LA

Sat, Dec 15

New York

NY

Sat, Dec 15

Newport

RI

Sat, Dec 15

Newport Beach

CA

Sat, Dec 15

Norfolk

VA

tba

Norman

OK

tba

Nyack

NY

tba

Ocean City

MD

Sat, Dec 15

Oklahoma City

OK

Sat, Dec 8

Olympia

WA

Sat, Dec 8

Omaha

NE

Sat, Dec 15

Orlando

FL

Sat, Dec 8

Ottawa

ON

tba

Oxford

MS

Sat, Dec 8

Palmer

AK

Sat, Dec 8

Maui

HI

Fri, Dec 14

Pasadena

CA

Sat, Dec 15

Peekskill

NY

Sat, Dec 15

Philadelphia

PA

Sat, Dec 15

Phoenix

AZ

Sat, Dec 8

Pittsburgh

PA

Sat, Dec 8

Portland

ME

Sat, Dec 1

Portland

OR

Sat, Dec 1

Portland

OR

Sat, Dec 8

Portland

OR

Sat, Dec 15

Portland

OR

Sat, Dec 22

Portsmouth

NH

Sat, Dec 1

Poughkeepsie

NY

Sat, Dec 22

Providence

RI

tba

Puerto Rico

Fri, Nov 23

Raleigh

NC

Sat, Dec 8

Red Bank

NJ

tba

Reno

NV

Sat, Dec 15

Richmond

VA

Sat, Dec 8

Roanoke

VA

tba

Rochester

NY

Sat, Dec 15

Royal Oak

MI

tba

Sacramento

CA

Sat, Dec 15

Saint Petersburg

FL

Sat, Dec 8

Salem

OR

tba

Salida

CO

tba

Salt Lake City

UT

Sat, Dec 22

Sandusky

OH

tba

Santa Barbara

CA

tba

Santa Cruz

CA

Fri, Dec 14

Santa Fe

NM

Fri, Dec 21

San Antonio

TX

Fri, Dec 7

San Diego

CA

Sat, Dec 8

San Diego

CA

Sat, Dec 15

San Francisco

CA

Sat, Dec 15

San Jose

CA

Sat, Dec 8

San Luis Obispo

CA

Sun, Dec 9

San Rafael

CA

Sat, Dec 8

Sarasota

FL

Sat, Dec 15

Saratoga Springs

NY

Sat, Dec 22

Savannah

GA

Sat, Dec 15

Scranton

PA

Sat, Dec 1

Seattle

WA

Sat, Dec 1

Seattle

WA

Sat, Dec 8

Seattle

WA

Sat, Dec 15

Shanghai

Sat, Dec 15

Shirlington

VA

tba

Shreveport

LA

Sat, Dec 15

Sioux Falls

SD

Sat, Dec 8

Skowhegan

ME

Sat, Dec 15

South Hadley

MA

tba

Spokane

WA

Sat, Dec 22

Springfield

MO

tba

Stamford

CT

Sat, Dec 1

State College

PA

Fri, Dec 14

Steamboat Springs

CO

tba

St Louis

MO

Sat, Dec 15

St Paul

MN

Sat, Dec 15

Summit County

CO

tba

Surfside Beach

TX

Sat, Dec 15

Syracuse

NY

Sat, Dec 1

Tacoma

WA

tba

Tallahassee

FL

tba

Tarrytown Sleepy Hollow

NY

Sat, Dec 15

Temecula

CA

Sat, Dec 22

Tucson

AZ

Sat, Dec 8

Tulsa

OK

tba

Tuscaloosa

AL

tba

Vancouver

WA

Sat, Dec 15

Ventura

CA

Sat, Dec 22

Victoria

BC

Sat, Dec 15

Virginia Beach

VA

Sat, Dec 15

Washington

DC

Sat, Dec 8

Washington

DC

Sat, Dec 15

Waterbury

CT

tba

Wenatchee

WA

tba

West Palm Beach

FL

Sat, Dec 15

Westerly

RI

tba

Wichita

KS

Sat, Dec 15

Wilmington

NC

Sat, Dec 8

Winston Salem

NC

Sat, Dec 8

Yakima

WA

tba

Youngstown

OH

tba

Yountville

CA

Sat, Dec 15

Remember the true meaning of Christmas this year and give a gift with purpose such as the donation of clothes, toys or money for those less fortunate. If you are lucky enough to attend a SantaCon it will make giving all the more fun.